[fund] co-optation by politico-religious and/or conservative forces

A powerful new militia dubbed "the Pakistani Taliban" has effectively seized control of swaths of the country's northern tribal areas in recent months, triggering alarm in Islamabad and marking a big setback in America's "war on terror".

WLUML has received this call for action from friends at Hotline Asia and urges you to respond. They state that in the past 10 months (May 2005 to February 2006), the places of worship and properties of religious minorities are increasingly being targeted by the extremist attacks and grabbing of properties in Pakistan.

Once again the axe of prohibition has fallen on a culturally and aesthetically most gratifying festival of spring - Basant. Playing to the tunes of clerics, the Punjab government earned the stigma of banning the colourful festival of kite flying.

Inspired by political triumphs by Islamists in several Arab states a growing number of young Syrians have been attending weekly Muslim prayers in mosques, and more and more women are taking private lessons to study the Koran and wearing the veil.

According to reports, Western relief agencies, including those run by the United Nations and the United States government, have complained of “perceptible harassment by ‘Jihadi elements’ working in the quake hit-areas in Azad Kashmir and the NWFP”.